1. Field of the Technology
The disclosure relates to the field of RC (radio control) transmitters to send signals for controlling various RC models such as model cars or other vehicles comprising a plurality of reattachable components such as a transmitter unit, a steering unit, and a grip unit.
2. Description of the Prior Art
In conventional radio control transmitter models, a user holds the entire body grip unit in their palm. Typically the upper body portion of the unit is disposed above the grip unit, and a steering type transmitter is attached to a steering wheel within a steering unit disposed in the upper body portion of the unit. Other steering type transmitters may be attached such as a stick or joystick instead of a steering wheel to convert the physical actuation of the user to commands sent to the radio-controlled model. The entire transmitter unit as a whole is generally rectangular-shaped.
Controlling the speed of the radio controlled model is typically performed by using a trigger switch coupled to the steering transmitter or a stick lever coupled to the stick transmitter. The stick transmitter and steering transmitter may be equipped with an extension unit or other various extensions known in the art, such as a battery unit which is disposed within the handle or main housing of the transmitter unit.
Transmitters with analog stick and steering wheel control schemes each typically comprise several components which form an integrated assembly and are difficult to separate or divide from the other components of the transmitter unit which include the grip, upper body, steering unit, trigger, analog stick, extension unit, and portions of the battery unit. The integrated nature of the components of the transmitter unit makes the free exchange or adaptability of each component extremely difficult. The RC transmitter unit is usually manufactured with either an analog stick or steering wheel control scheme, thus rendering the transmitter into something that is not easily changeable or alterable by the user. Therefore, if the user of the transmitter even desired to replace or exchange a component of the transmitter unit for another component, the current prior art cannot meet such a request.
For example, users who wish to use the steering wheel and steering transmitter control scheme or users who wish to use an analog stick control scheme were forced to use whatever control scheme was available since the basic forms of control are so different and typically not interchangeable.
Additionally because 95% of users of RC models prefer the steering wheel control scheme versus 5% of that for analog stick control, it does not provide much financial incentive for manufacturers to sell an assortment of both types of RC transmitter units to dealers in order to meet the needs of a diverse customer base. Furthermore, production costs increase dramatically for manufacturing both types of RC transmitters, thus further adding to the difficulty of providing both types of control schemes to the market place.
What is needed is an RC transmitter that comprises the traditional transmitter components such as a steering unit, grip unit, and upper body while still maintaining the ability for each component of the transmitter to be detached separately with one-touch and combined freely according to the personal preference of a user, allowing for easy replacement for each individual component. The transmitter should be customizable so that the user may decide what is best for their individual needs while maintaining manufacturing costs at a minimum for the manufacturer.